Pronunciation: ' smek-tik
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin smecticus cleansing, having the properties of soap, from Greek sm ē ktikos, from sm ē chein to clean
Date: 1923
: of, relating to, or being the phase of a liquid crystal characterized by arrangement of molecules in layers with the long molecular axes in a given layer being parallel to one another and those of other layers and perpendicular or slightly inclined to the plane of the layer ― compare CHOLESTERIC , NEMATIC